Seal for aircraft control rods



Dec. 3l, 1946. R. A. woLF ETAL SEAL FOR AIRCRAFT CONTROL RODS Filed Aug- 15.1942

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 mgl,

R. A. woLF Er Al. 2,413,671 SEAL FOR ARCRAFT CONTROL RODS Filed Aug. 1:5, 1942. 2 sheets-snee; 2'

Y NEYS atented Dec. 31, 1946 liltll SEAL FOR AIRCRAFT CONTROL RODS Robert A. Wolf and Herbert'L. Bowers, Kenmore, N. Y., assignors to Bell Aircraft Corporation,

Buffalo, N. Y.

Application August 13, 1942/, Serial No. 4545630 2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in aircraft body and control structure.

In aircraft constmction it is necessary to arrange control means in such fashion that they may be manipulated from within the aircraft to accomplish control functions exteriorly thereof. To this end it is required that certain portions of the control means extend through the aircraft wall' structure in such fashion as to be movable with respect tov such wall. In aircraft designed to be used at high altitudes= or under anyl conditions where the atmosphere is sufciently rariiied as to require the maintenance of a pressure higher than that of thesurrounding atmosphere within the -aircraftbodu the problem of extending control means through the wall of the aircraftA body is complicated by the necessity for preventing fluid passage thereabout.

The present invention provides an arrangement whereby aircraft control means may be projected through the-wall of an aircraft-fuselage or other body portion in such fashion as to insure against uid leak through such wall, while at the same time providinga construction affordingthe utmost in ease, sensitivity and facility of movementof the control element. It is desi-red' that such control element be movable both axially to and fro in said wall and bodily about axes ap proximately in the plane of the aircraft wall. It is4 further desired ythat thevv control element be freely rotatable about its own-l axis;

According tothe present invention the sea-lling element'which prevents fluid passage through the aircraft wall at the point oi control emergence is so arranged as not to be subject to loads or deiiections of any sort, regardless oi the kind of movements or forces which may be applied to the control element itself.

Several forms of the improved aircraft control supporting and wall-sealing structure are shown and described in detail herein but it is to be understood that various mechanical modications are within the province of those skilled in the art and that the invention is not to be considered limited otherwise than as defined in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary cross sectional view through an aircraft body wall showing a control element extending therethrough and one form of the improved means forJ supporting the control element and sealing the aircraft wall;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary, longitudinal cross sectional view through the left--hand portion of the sealing means of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view through an aircraft wall showing a modified form of sealing means in elevation; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, longitudinal cross sectional View through the right-hand end of the sea-ling means of Fig. 3.

Like characters oi reference denote like parts throughout the several iigures' of the drawings and in Fig. 1 the numeral lil designates a portieri of anaircraft wall and numeral It indicates a control element extending therethrough. The opening of the wall lll through which the control element Il extends (not shown) isconsiderably larger than the. control element itself.

'riveted to the wall' or otherwise secured in fluid tight relation. A ilexible tube llhas one of its ends disposed about the outer end ci' the collar l2 and may be secured in position by a conventional hose clamp iii, or the like.

The opposite endy of theI tube' it is disposed about a collar Il and. a second hose cla-mp lli-- is providedv for maintaining the' proper assembly'. If desired, the collars l2 and l? may be formed with peripheral ridges as at t9, to insure against axial displacement of the parts; rIfhe coliar il has inner annular formations for receiving and seatinga pair of` spaced annular bearing elements 20 and 2l having clamped therebetween a. sealing assembly designated generally 22. The bea-rings 2|l`and 2|y and., the sealing assembly 22 are retained inthek collar I-lby a screw-threadedv gland 231 As-appears fromr'g. 2, the sealing assembly comprises a pair of complementary annular cage elements 2e, and 25 whichl retain a flexible annular ring 2t which may be of a material having the characteristics of leather or rubber. It wili be noted that the inner portion of the sealing ring 26 is disposed obliquely against the `control element Il and the desired form of the sealing element 26 is insured by the presence of an encircling coil spring, 2l.

It will be noted from the foregoing that the bearing elements 20 and 2l insure permanent and accurate concentricity as between the collar ll and the control element il. At no time can manipulative forces applied to the control element Il dellect or in any other way affect the sealing relationship of the flexible annulaielement 26.

In the form shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the tube ffl is formed of rubber or the like and has embedded therein a helical coil spring the convolutions of which appear at 30 in Fig. 2. The spring 3e prevents collapse of tube I4 due to fluid pressure forces exerted against the exterior surface thereof. In the form shown in Fig. 2 the tube I4 is of increased thickness at the convolutions of spring 33 as indicated at 3l.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 the control element sealing means is functionally the same as in Figs. 1 and 2, the chief diierence being in the structure of the exible tube, designated generally by the numeral 35 in Fig. 3. In Fig. 3 the numeral 31 designates an aircraft Wall portion and numeral 38 designates a control element in the form of a shaft having operative connection with an arm 39 disposed outside the aircraft body.

Here, again, the opening in the wall 31 is not shown but is considerably larger than the control parts which are to extend therethrough. Over such opening at the inner side of the Wall 31 there is a collar 40 which is secured to the aircraft wall 31 by means of a base flange 4I which in this instance seats against the outer surface of the wall 31. In Figs. 3 and 4 numeral 43 designates a collar which is the counterpart of the collar l1 of Fig. 2 and which is connected to the collar 40 by a tube section 43 having ears 43 at its opposite ends for pivotal connection with complementary ears 41 and 48 formed on the collars 43 and 43, respectively. Pivot pins 50 provide articulated connection between the collars 43 and 43 and the tube section 45 and the joints therebetween are sealed by exible sleeves 53, each of which has an intermediate annular accordionpleated portion 54, to permit free articulation of the joints between the collars 43 and 43 andthe tube section 45. The opposite ends of each sleeve 53 are disposed about the collars 40 and 43 and the tube section 45 and may be secured by means of conventional hose clamps 51.

The collar 43 isy stepped and formed at its inner periphery to receive a pair of spaced annular bearing elements 63 and 3| having a fluid sealing assembly 62 engaged therebetween. A screwthreaded gland 63 is provided for retaining the bearings 60 and 6| and the sealing assembly 32. The fluid seal of Fig. 4 is the same as that of Fig. 2 save that a resilient ring 34 is provided for giving shape to a flexible sealing ring 35 and for urging it into sealing engagement with the control element 33.

It will be noted that in both forms of the invention the inner portion of the annular sealing rings 26 and 35 are directed obliquely along the control elements Il and 33, respectively, in a direction toward the interior of the aircraft body. By virtue of this construction, fluid pressure within the aircraft body in excess of those surrounding the aircraft body will urge the inner periphery of the sealing rings into more intimate sealing contact with the surfaces of the associated con trol elements.

We claim:

1. An aircraft structure comprising an aircraft wall having a control aperture formed therein, an elongated control element disposed Within said aperture and adapted to have a limited amount of movement in substantially all directions, said aperture being of a size considerably greater than the size of said element whereby the latter may be free to have unrestricted iioating movement within said aperture, an elongated flexible tubular member xed at one end to said Wall in registration with said aperture, said member projecting only forwardly from said aperture and having an inner diameter substantially equal to the diameter of said aperture, sealing means spaced from said wall and carried by the end oi said member which is remote from said Wall, said means comprising packing means in sealing engagement with said member, and bearing iianges carried by said tubular member independently of said packing means and axially spaced from each other and from said packing means for supporting said element centrally Within the remote end of said tubular member and for relatively guiding said element in its reciprocating movement therein.

2. An aircraft structure comprising an aircraft wall having a control aperture formed therein, an elongated control element disposed Within said aperture and adapted to have a limited amount o1 movement in substantially ali directions, said aperture being of a size considerably greater than the size of said element whereby the latter may be free to have unrestricted oating movement within said aperture, an elongated flexible tubular member xed at one end to said wall in registration with said aperture, said member projecting only forwardly from said aperture and having an inner diameter substantially equal to the diameter of said aperture, sealing means spaced from said Wall and carried by the end of said member which is remote from said Wall, said means comprising a collar secured to and in sealing engagement within said member, packing means carried by said collar, and bearing anges secured in said collar independently of said packing means and axially spaced from each other and from said packing means ior supporting said element centrally` Within the remote end of said tubular member and for relatively guiding said element in its reciprocating movement therein.

ROBERT A. WOLF. HERBERT L. BOWERS. 

